UPDATE: This film has been pushed back to February 19th, 2010.

Like Sergio Leone with westerns or Alfred Hitchcock with thrillers, Martin Scorsese has become synonymous with the crime genre. Such movies like Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, Goodfellas, Casino and The Departed have easily become the most movies of the genre.  However, it’s unfair to simply label Scorsese with crime movies when he has a proven track record of doing other things like dramas (The Aviator), documentaries (The Last Waltz) and historical epics (Gangs of New York). Easily his best non-crime movie would be Raging Bull, sometimes considered his best overall. I’m glad to see Scorsese change it up yet again, with a thriller called Shutter Island, his first thriller since the remake of Cape Fear in 1991. It actually even borders the horror genre, which would be a first for Scorsese. Shutter Island stars Leonardo DiCaprio making it the fourth time they’ve worked together (like DeNiro before), the others being, Gangs of New York, The Aviator and The Departed. Shutter Island was adapted from a book of the same name, written by Dennis Lehane in 2003.  Lehane’s other work includes the adapted Gone Baby Gone and Mystic River as well as having been a writer for HBOs great “The Wire.”

Ashes, ashes, we all fall DOWN.

Set in 1954, DiCaprio plays Teddy Daniels, a U.S. marshal investigating the vanishing of a patient from a mental hospital for the criminally insane on Shutter Island, much like Alcatraz.  Joining him is his partner, U.S. marshal Chuck Aule (Mark Ruffalo, Zodiac). They are looking for an escaped patient named Rachel Soldano (Emily Mortimer, Match Point), who just disappeared a mere 24 hours after they got there.  Helping with the investigation is Dr. John Cawley, (Ben Kingsley, Sexy Beast) the hospital’s administrator and main physician. While searching for Rachel, they get suspicious of what Dr. Cawley is telling them and soon question his story. Before they can start a truthful investigation, the island is struck by a hurricane, which traps the marshals and a cell riot ensues. They now have to deal with their own sanity amongst the insane and find the real truth behind Shutter Island.

The movie will also co-star Michelle Williams (Synecdoche,  New York), Max Von Sydow (The Diving Bell and the Butterfly), Jackie Earle Haley (Watchmen), Patricia Clarkson (Pieces of April), Elias Koteas (Shooter) and the Zodiac killer himself, John Carroll Lynch (Zodiac). Martin Scorsese (obviously) directs Shutter Island and works from the adapted screenplay written by Laeta Kalogridis (Pathfinder).

"The better to shoot inmates with, my dear."

This looks sweet and you can count on me seeing it. Scorsese is a legend and is still one the best directors going. I’ll probably enjoy this a little more than normal because it brings the horror element into it. Since his last movie, The Departed, was such a commercial success, I think this should do well having Scorsese’s name on it. Plus, the horror/thriller genre has always been popular with audiences. Lock me down, because I’m ready to visit Shutter Island.

Shutter Island opens October 2^nd.